Faith Evident | Pr Dr Daniel Kong

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Up your day today.

We are gonna move on to the next value, which

is on this topic of faith.

Evident. Okay, there's the.

Reason why we see these two words together, right, Not

faith filled, although we love to be faith filled as well,

not faith minded, not only talking about faith. You know

all of us top faith, but it's talking about evident right.

How many lawyers in the house. I think there's at

least one evidence evidence, right, And what do you see?

There's a reason for this word evident.

Right.

So let me ask you or start by this question

before we even go a bit deeper. Have you ever

met somebody that sometimes try to convince you about something?

Hopefully not because of sales and all that, but sometimes

they say things like trust me, trust me, right, trust me,

trust me, trust me. But after a while, sometimes you

may not completely trust that person anymore either, thoose some

not so good experiences. But you can say, right, this

trust me thing is a very difficult thing to do, right,

But why don't you trust a person anymore?

Have you ever thought about that? How do you lose trust? Right?

It's because trust cannot be just something that is spoken

with words. We can't just say trust me but not

do anything beyond that. It has to be proven by actions.

Right.

Imagine somebody says that I know, let's say me me, Okay,

I really love my wife, but I don't do anything.

I don't spend time with her, I don't sacrifice for her,

I do not surf her.

I didn't speak kind words to her.

If that's the case, right, do I still really, you know,

love my wife?

Not quite? Right? Not quite because just.

Because love, you know, has to be also visible, it

has to be practice or eventually you'll show itself no

matter how I say or convince you, and you know,

it needs to be proven to some extent, right, and

faith is a bit like that. You can say all

you want, but until it is evidence, or until it

is displayed or shown, it just remains an inside. It

remains invisible, and you need to ensure that it's revisible

before you can say that, hey, this person is faith filled, faith,

you know all these other things.

That's why faith evidence is what we're going to be

focusing on. So caught that.

Hopefully that gives you a bit of introduction, and if

you look to your notes.

Page. Is this that someone help me to pitch twenty two? Okay?

Thank you? So twenty two? Faith evident? Okay? Ah?

And so the question is not so much of do

you have faith? All of us that we have faith, right,

But the bigger question is is faith evident?

All right?

Because as you see here it says at the very start,

faith is not just something we believe, right, it is

something It is something that is evident.

Okay.

So again the question is not do you have faith?

But it's faith evident all right? The more question is

not do I attend church because I'm faithful? Do I

know the Bible? Of course you should not. Can you

quote the scriptures even right? But simply in a very

simplic sense. Next slide, can people see your faith?

True?

You know what you do, not just an insight, but

on the expression outside as well?

Can people see the faith in you? And I?

If you do not catch anything today, I want to

start off with this verse. And you remember this, right,

faith is invisible, right, nobody can say that faith is

you know, is evident, but obedience actually brings out and

makes faith visible, okay, very powerful. Faith is invisible until

obedience make it invisible.

All right, say all more time together.

Faith is invisible until obedience make it visible. Okay, So

let's move to Hebrews chapter eleven. I know it's a

little bit long. I'll run through a little bit. I'll

skip through some parts as well, but I hope you

catch some of the big things here. I'm reading from

the NIV version because it's easier to understand. But his

whole chapter in Hebrews eleven. Uh, the title starts off

by saying faith in action. So you really know this

is faith evidenced. Okay, so I'm retruth chapter sorry, verse

one first. Now, faith is confidence in what we hope

for and assurance about what we do not see. Like

I said, if we do not see it, it has

to be evidenced out right. This is what the ancients

were commended for. The minster people of the Bible, they

were commanded of, or the heroes of the Bible. They

talked about how they are commended for their faith. You

can see here I highlighted this by faith by faith

in rade hopefully is clear on the screen.

Right.

By faith, you understand that the universe was formed at

God's command, so that what is scene was not made

out of what was visible. By faith, Able brought God

a better offering than can did. And again by faith

he was commanded as righteous. Uh. And when God spoke

well of his offerings, and by faith, I've got to

pilate this one.

Able still speaks even though he is dead.

Right next one, by faith, he Enoch was taken from

this life so that he did not experience death, all right.

And then skipping on to chapter six, sorry worth six?

Rather and without faith, it is impossible to please God

because anyone who comes to him must believe that he

exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.

Let's move on to Noah.

By faith, Noah when worn about things of the unseen,

this is about the floods, right, he still continued to

do the up. He built the up in faith by

faith he was he condemned the world and they are,

and became heir of the righteousness that is in keeping

with faith.

Abraham. Right was it by faith?

Abraham, when called to go to a place he would

later receive as inheritance, he obeyed and went. So when

God said go, he left his hometown and went right

to do. And then by faith he made that his

home in the Promised Land on a skip ahead. So

verse thirteen, all these people still live by faith until

or when they died.

So they kept the faith. We heard this expression before.

They did not sometimes even received their promise in their

lifetime right, but they kept the faith Verse seventeen. By

faith Abraham when God was this when he took Isaac

his precious literally quite precious, because why he was, he

took some time to get there, to even have a son,

and then by faith he was tested, and then he

actually still proceeded on.

By faith. Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau in regard to

their future. By faith.

Jacob when he was dying, bless each of Joseph's son

and worship as he leaned on top of his staff

by faith. By faith, even Moses there, uh you know,

also when by faith as he left Egypt and did

what he needed to do, uh you know, against the

authorities of that time. Hey, by faith, the people passed

through the Red Sea as as on dry land. When

the Egyptians tried to do so, they were drowned. And

then even the walls of Jericho again by faith they

marched around seven days before uh you know, the walls

came down, even Ray had the prostitute was commanded here

Why because of her faith?

Right?

So, as we can tell here by reading all this, right,

everything is true faith. Right, these guys were not supernatural

superhero heroes because of what they just did, but because

of their faith. And that's why it's very important that

it's all evidence. If you go down to the last

verse there these or as in all of them were

commended for their faith. Yet they received sometimes they didn't

receive what they were promised in their lifetime. Okay, so

the passage here talks about superheroes because of their faith.

It's quite humbling actually you think about it. And you know,

if you read onto the next part it talks about,

you know, some of the rewards later on, but as

they were doing it, as they were journeying with life,

it is all because of just faith. And how do

we see faith? It is true the simple exercise of obedience.

And this leads me to point number one. All right,

what's point number one?

Over here?

Faith is active obedience, right, So of course I have

to expand this a little bit. I call this of

course faith is active abitiness. It fits what we have

on your on your notes. But I also wanted to

just expand it to say that faith is not just

merely believing. Right, Sometimes you always talk about believing in

faith or in faith. I'll do this because if you believe, right,

I don't think you'll make it to the Hall of

fame faith, Hall of faith fame, Yeah, hall of faith

all right, because those listed, those heroes that we read

earlier in Hebrews eleven were all there because of their faith.

Not Hall of fame, but Hall of faith. Noah, Abraham, Sarah,

even Sarah, Moses, Rayhab David, Samah, all the many people.

It's all recognized because of their faith. And it's not

because they were recognized because they simply believed. You caught that,

if they just believed, I'm quite sure their names are

not to be on that list, right, But next night

they they didn't simply believe, they obeyed. And this is

where faith is evidence. Now, Noah, what do you do?

He built it up? You know this guy, right, They

didn't even see rain before. Imagine this. Someone comes up

to you, say, a bro, Brandon, go and build and

for both somebun even you know how big the art is.

It's crazy big, you know, but.

If you have not seen rain before you live in

a desert place, you'll be like, dude, are you nuts?

What's this for?

You know, Abraham left his homeland, Moses stood before the

Pharaoh against a Thoro, the no ray, Hab hit, the spies,

all these things. Now, I'm gonna just focus on these

two for now. But yeah, faith begins right even before

results appear.

Right.

Sometimes you always say, Lord, show me, you know, before

I take that step of obedience. But these guys, these

heroes here, just did what they were called to do

or they were instructed to do. Even Abraham or he

just said, was go why Because faith, you know, move people,

that's for sure.

But it needs to be acted upon.

It needs to be obeyed before it can be sit

as evidence or you make it up there in terms

of heroes of faith. Right, so, and we already read

it earlier, right Hebrews eleven versus six siss this right.

Without faith, it's impossible to please God. That means to say,

right some extent, if we cannot evidence it, you're not

pleasing God. Or in other words, if you do not obey,

you just hear ernie tickle your mind. Good information. But

if it doesn't involve action. God is not too pleased. Right,

Every example that we read earlier involves action, right, because

biblical faith will always bear fruits true obedience. It will

always produce obedience. If it is not, it doesn't, then

something is wrong now, right, right. Sometimes we think faith

is just believing, and that's really hard. I believe, Lord,

I believe, I believe, I believe. You know, it's hard, yes,

to believe. But James reminds us, and this is James

two twenty six. Right, say, faith that works is dead

very strong words, you know, is dead, you know, useless.

In other words, if nothing changes, perhaps our faith itself

isn't quite alive or on fire. You know, we talk

about revival this year. Right, maybe perhaps something like this

has to be beyond just belief, right, It needs to

be an active obedience. And that's why he Brews eleven,

as I mentioned many times, celebrates people who did what

God asked them to do, not merely agreed intellectually, because

always can agree intellectually but do not execute. And that

challenged me, you know, because sometimes I feel information about

all this just just download first, download first. Right, It's

actually easier to somewhat to some extent agree with God.

It's actually harder to obey. You think about it.

Let me to say, you know all the facts, nice

to have you feel good learning about faith, but obedience

actually the harder part.

He taught true that. Yeah. Yeah, so let me.

Just give you a simple example a in line with

Brandon's heroics. Last week, you know running half marathon. I'm

also challenged to run a half marathon. Okay, I'm actually

doing this next next Sunday actually has a kidding like

actually planned quite a long time ago. I actually didn't

make it for the score marathon, so I had to

sign up for another marathon two weeks later. But yeah,

I started running for the start of the year, so

this would be like, hey, half a year, do you

actually so?

So I'm not as brave as Brandon. I have been training.

Uh sorry Brandon anyway, but but you.

Know I come from a Just to give you the

background for those of you who seen me do sports,

I'm cauctually quite uh energetic kind of a person.

I'm good with short bursts. I'm a sprinter by.

Nature, uh and I have this burst of immediate power.

But I'm not so good with the long run or

sustainable long distance. My wife gets outrun or outrun me

distance wise, but slow you can trying to say, right,

you get it eventually. Yeah, so every run you must understand. Oh.

So by the way I used to train, Uh, I.

Was a Selango State water polo. Uh I trade a

Sango team la okay during my my my growing up dates.

So this is how I'm conditioned.

Right.

So I'm I'm a sports kind of person.

So in my mind, I'm always wired to like, okay,

you got to train harder, got to train faster, and

even running right, I always thought run faster lot right.

Every way, every run, even the short has become became

a race. I'll start off slow and then suddenly I

pick up. If I don't look at the you know

the data and all that and and and uh something

me not. I got injured a few months ago. I

undergo some medical therapy, and I'm also going through a

liberty of coaching as we go through what's that thing

caller uh physio right, And I have a coach that

sort of tried to coach me back into shape essentially,

So a lot of the advices slow down and for

a person who is always wired to just boat out

the gate. Yeah it seems wrong to try to hit

some targets, And yeah, how can I run faster by

slowing down? Right logically, because in my mind, surely running

faster means better results, right, But I had to make

the decision, by the way, to trust what I could

not understand fully, but trust someone who knows better, in

this case the coach. So I slowed down. I slowed

down to the point that it feels I feel very bored, right,

and it felt strange for people to overtake me sometimes,

and I wonder is this really working? But week after

week I've done that. I obeyed the plan and then

I put to the tests a few weeks ago and

actually ran further. I ran stronger and recovering better, and

eventually my pace was so increased. So funny I ran

slow to run faster. Yeah, so what if I learned

I didn't fully understand it by obey for so long

because they know what they're saying, right, They've got the background.

So I obeyed first, and then understanding came later, or

results even came later. So I got a picture over here,

not not really me, it's just AI generated obeit before

I understood and sometimes.

Faith is a bit like that as well. Right, isn't

it how faith works as well?

God sometimes don't actually very rarely sometimes got to stop

and explain everything to you. And this is why he

has to go through Why but he's asking us to obey.

But sometimes for us, right, we had to like, why

why do you have to do this? Why do you

have to slow down?

Why?

But you think about it? Right, those heroes of faith

they read earlier, right, all of them. God didn't stop

and explain. Okay, this is how rainfall comes about, you know,

average rainfall over this time, and because of that you

need to be prepared or even Okay, this is how

you read architectural drawings. This is the millimeters will translate

to how many meters or kilometers.

Et cetera.

No, God simply say built, Noah build, and then he built.

But how many of us always like, let's figure this

out first before we actually execute it. Make sure the

units are right, all right, make sure I understand rainfall correctly?

What the engineer here? Rainfall? Anyway? Yeah? What what Abraham?

What did God tell Abraham?

Go?

He went? But how many of us always like, show

me where to go? La?

What app do you use lah which country? I might

we overthink things? Peter when he was asked to come?

What is what God said?

Come? That's it? They obeyed. Now do they understand understand everything?

Probably not right, But this is where faith is actually exercised.

We rarely can say I understand completely, but faith is open.

It is often I would say I may not understand completely,

but I want to trust completely.

Then it's easier to obey.

You didn't catch da Again, understanding is important, don't get

me wrong, but it's not the most important thing.

Right. So let me ask you this.

When God asks you to obey, maybe he's asking you

to forgive somebody here. Right, Let's say a lord, explain

to me why he's asking to serve you know, why

he's asking to step in the leadership even right. Sometimes

we often or speak to the colleague HM about Jesus,

let us surrender or whatever you're holding on to. Maybe

it's time to surrender it to the Lord. So again,

the question isn't about do you have faith? The more

important question is what has faith caused you to do?

Right? So did I share that the slide? Yeah?

Faith is active obedience. Right, It's more than just believing

every Okay, so far, two more points and I'm done right.

As you know, we are following this quite closely because

we're also going to be looking at it at homes

as well. So some of the verses are already given

to you at the bottom over there.

Okay.

But if part one or point number one establishes you

know that faith actually obeys or leads to obedience, had

to understand answers the questions, then why don't we obey?

We've ever thought about that? Why don't we obey?

Right? Pastor Kenneth when he was sharing some of the

notes with us, he said, this faith actually spells ris

case for him, he says, risk and you understand this

in a little while. Okay, So we know this right

Romans ten seventeen here says, so then faith comes by

hearing and hearing by the word of God. So it's

important because otherwise you will not have instructions. But back

to obedience in a little alla. So why don't we

often obey? It's the big question here. I think the

simple answer is probably because it's just uncomfortable to obey,

or we're doing something new. I mean, I may I

always like to do new, things, except for my wife.

She's the type that always like fresh things fresh. If

we were not married, she'll probably be living in a

different country every other day, that kind of a thing.

And I don't like to do that. I like security,

I like, you know, anyway, comfort zone. Right, obedience actually

requires us to step out of comfort zone. And that's

why sometimes it's hard to obey. What I mean by that,

you need more trust, right, you need to surrender, or

sometimes we say it's very riskylar stepping up in faith

into something into the unknown, risky right, what if or

what if you know it doesn't work out?

Or what if I do this? And then what were you?

Those kind those kind of questions, right, And that's why

Pastor Kenneth he spelled faith as risk okay.

And when you hear the word risk, what comes to mind? Danger?

Right?

Danger?

Imediating that, hey this Christians or reckless? And now you

know they they lead very risky lives. They always just

go out and obey.

Et cetera. But be bigger faith.

You know, if you understand bigle of faith carefully right,

it's not actually recklessness, Okay, It isn't saying, oh just

jump off the building.

You know, God was st angels to to to you.

Know, ensure that you're okay, you know, and hope for

the best that God will catch you.

Kind of risk ticking. No, that's not faith.

It's just silila actually right, defining loss of gravity. But

you know, faith is never about taking risks because we

enjoy the truth of example, but you know they are

they are not opposite.

Risk is what risk risks?

Excited about risk was that was the expression, I don't know,

true seekers, you know, I want to go for it.

But actually faith is just about obeying God, even when

obedience feels a little bit risky. All right, there's a

huge difference within that you're going through it because of excitement,

but not rather it's actually it's really obedience is what

drives you there. All right, Now you think about it,

remember Matthew fourteen when was asked or was called or

he responded to walk on water that scripture. If you can,

you can, you can turn to Matthew fourteen. Sometimes we

say eater took a very big risk to step out

to the unknown. Right, That's why we always see it, right,

very risky, right, you'll sink. But actually the more amazing

part of that particular story is that it actually just

said one word. What's that one word? Lie?

Come right? Come? Now?

Was it just because of the English word come? Probably not,

but I bet it is more the recognition of the

person or the authority of that word come.

Right.

Everything changed. Why because Jesus was the one that said come.

It means God is the word of God that called

him to come. So, like I said, it may appear

on the surface that this guy a lot of faith,

he's taking risks, et cetera. He's very courageous, But no,

you think about it, he's just walking on the word

of God because why he recognized that Jesus was the

one who called. So the miracle wasn't the water the miracle.

The bigger miracle is actually the obedience itself. Right, So

Church never ever admire Peter's courage more than Jesus command.

All right. He wasn't brave for just the sake of

being brave.

He simply obeyed, And that's something to be commended, right

because when he obeyed, he experience something that the other

eleven could never have experienced. See, the power and obedience,

and that's really faith, all right. So yeah, sometimes we

ask God show me a miracle, then I obey. Ever

ever prayed that before, show me a sign, show me

a rainbow, then I obey. But Jesus here says obey,

and then I'll show you, just like he showed Peter

a miracle. So the sequence is a bit different, and

that's what faith is. So next slide this God speaks,

faith hears, obedience requires that act, and then that miracle

or the evidence will come later. Okay, I'll expand more

about this later on, but this is the sequence. Okay,

recognizing who speaks, you know, faith is the download part.

But actually faith requires the activation and that's where obedience

kicks in.

Then the miracle will come. Don't worry, it will come

all right now.

In this part here, part two, it says faith must

be alive, not just claim. I'll expand this, so you know,

the apostle, let's put the scriptures of Philippines. Sorry, can

you go to Philippines?

Thanks? So.

But someone will say you have faith and I have works.

Show me your faith without your works, and I will

show you my faith by my works. So basically here

the apostle James famously just declared that faith without works

is actually did That's what we said earlier, right, mean

to say it can be in the doctrine doctrinally correct.

You walk with God for even for decades and still

not have faith if you do not activate it.

That's the danger.

The mister again, you have all the correct all the

passive paper notes, et cetera, done, but you.

Do not activate it. To Brandan laughing, Yeah.

That's why it says that I will show you my

faith by my works, because why when you have faith,

definitely an expression of it it works, not the other

way around. Paul also wants us right that with you know,

there can be a form of Godliness without any power.

So even if you're doing everything right, you can potentially

not experience any power just as God intended it if

you do not actually do it rightfully with face. So

it goes hand in hand. It cannot be disconnected. Some

do do do do. Don't get me wrong, it's good,

but you need to do it faith it goes hand

in hand. So yeah, definitely when you hear, you got

to do because that is where faith would empower you

to do so much more. All right, So that's why

back to that slide where it says God speaks, faith

hears obedience, acts, evidence follows. It's in that order and

in that sequence for that reason. Now, let me stop

here for a while. Have you ever heard testimonies before? Guys, right,

always have the destinies before. I haven't heard it for

I think on this stage, maybe two or three weeks ago,

we had a testimony.

Remember on that you anyway? Thank God is alive anyway? Ah?

Yeah, Now every testimony you think you've you can remember

what is the first thing that people you can people

say Nobody comes out and say, ah, everything is very comfortable,

thank God. Right, everything made sense to me, and hey,

thank you God for whatever right or nothing actually just

challenge me or stretch me during that testimony or nothing

required faith in the testimony that's given. Every testimony will

always start off with some form of area of you know,

being not so comfortable, uncertainty. Oh, I don't know how

to do this. I'm scared, you know, I don't know

how this will work out. I don't think i'm qualified enough.

I don't know what would happen if I took that

step of faith. Right, But of course every testiment will

end there. But you know what, God came true for me,

and that's why we call that testimony, right, so every

testimony would begin with an uncomfortable decision. If you think

about it, Eric carefully, you just got to take that

leap of faith obedience, obedience. Now I think we sheard

with all that. Our family went to a road trip

a few weeks ago, a month ago. Now, we went

to this place called the duck Up. Of all places,

you probably know this place called Turmalo more than when

tuck Up is near uh Thermalo. So on the way

back to KL we stopp by Beentam for lunch because

it's a it goes to the Carr Carr Highway. That

route Okay, after lunch, what happened was ways I always

say it's wayside, and my ways says turn right to

turn off the highway. And then me, being the driver,

I'm thinking, like, why turn off the highway because I

can see that the highway is clear, right you look ahead,

the whole road is clear. And then they brought us

to this small little lane uh that is running in

parallel with the highway. But a lot of trucks, a

lot of is trunk road are pretty much definitely smaller,

definitely more unfamiliar because from a tree lane to just

a single carriageway kind of a thing. At the moment,

I thought, what have I done? You know it's going

to make it worse, et cetera. And I was also

wrestling with that decision whether to turn off or not.

But I did lah, Like I said, I just trust

trust something right, trust what? So So the question is

do you trust what you can see or you trust

the one in this case where is that can see

beyond what you can You cannot at least at that

point in time. So five minutes later, you know, like

I said, Ryan, apparently did you did see?

Oh wow, the road is really very bad?

Then you see the ways the d see your writ right,

But even in our eyes usually we can see across

the street across in the highway. He's really clocked up, right,

So I posibly that picture hill like that you can

see like sometimes when we hear right, he's very tempting

to just keep going, but we can't see further way right,

and we're like, hey, why why do I have to

veer off?

So what has happened?

The roads probably have not changed, right, But what has

changed really is that there was perhaps a higher being

or a higher application that has a better perspective or

a bit's eye view of a situation.

So faace a little bit like that as well.

Sometimes on the ground it feels like, wait, what's this love?

But remember God has a has a what do they

call it in gaming and all that he has a

big view, you know, it has a higher order perspective, right,

so you can see far far ahead. So yeah, faith

is a bit like that. I know it's uncomfortable to

turn off the up purpose of being a bit bumpy

as well, how come law? Yeah, but yeah, that's what

it is, all right? So can I ask you one thing?

When was the last time when you were called out

of your comfort zone into exciting some.

Faith and it costs you something?

Good question to ask, you know, right, can you take

an hour of your time after church to connect with

somebody so hard lord rushing off to whatever? Yeah, maybe

it's even asking you can you just forgive that person

who wronged you.

Last week?

Or choosing to be honest about I don't know, filing taxes,

I don't know. I'm just I'm not going to pick

on anybody, by the way, It's just it's just random

thoughts that come to mind, right, or giving generously a

number that God has placed in your heart, or even

saying yes to serving.

Or sharing Jesus with somebody that God has placed in

your heart.

Those moments, right, can sometimes really feel like God is

asking you to just get off the road, get off

the highway. But He's got a higher perspective because he

can see better, you know, James uh in twenty six?

Can somebody read change twenty six? I maybe do not

have it up with me? What does James y six say?

Right?

Faith without works it's dead. That does it say faith

without feeling is dead or faith without emotions is dead?

No, it's without works, it's dead.

Right, So if another way you look at it, right,

it's faith should not be just hurt it you know. Sorry,

Faith should not only be heard, it should be seen evidence.

Like I said, right, because genuine faith I eventually will

change our behavior, will change our behavior. Imagine this I

use just like as an example and not Also, let's

just use my kids now. Imagine if I mean I

love my kids by the way, imagine if I say

exactly I love you as should I love you boys,

I love you, et cetera. You know, I never spend

time with them. I never listened to them. I don't

even care about them, right, I never sacrificed for them.

What would they think? Eventually they will say, Daddy, something

is wrong. You say one thing, but you do something else.

Right.

So this is exactly what James is saying here. Faith

shouldn't be heard, it has to be seen. And again

it's just a reminder that we can always be doctrinally correct.

We may able have walked with Jesus many many years

in our faith or in our Christian work. Rather, if

you even have written books about faith, but the moment you

do not actually exercise that faith or practice that faith.

It's just, yeah, I know all this. Sometimes we say

things like this, you know, I know how this works, right,

I've done ministry before, I serve before.

I've heard before as well.

But when you say that you don't want to obey,

you're also sometimes saying things like Lord, maybe perhaps I

don't depend on you too much anymore because I got

it all figured out.

M Yeah.

And this is the danger here, because you're denying yourself

also the power that God has intended it. Small thing, yes,

but outwardly you're saying, I'm driving this, Lord, don't have

to get too involved in what I do. So, yeah,

it's a dangerous place to be, really dangerous place to be.

So can I encourage all of us?

Right?

Never, Let never ever become experts of Christianity, all of us,

because it's always okay to be beginners of.

Obedience.

You know, this childlike faith that we sometimes talk about

quite a fabit. Yeah, you need to be okay with that,

don't be don't have a PhD in being experts in Christianity,

but you cannot have that childlike faith to be obedient.

Let's not only be known as Christians people who know

Bible stories but cannot exercise any obedience at all. In fact,

I would say, let's be people that start writing stories

where God is involved through our obedience. Okay, just now

we're sang about I think we're sang about you know here,

I am.

I'll go kind of a song. I can't remember your song?

Was that? But yeah, more than you know? More you

know I see in the abandonly right? Oh? Any is you?

But are we acting like that? Last point? And I

end here? Yeah, okay, it says here, don't live on

past glories? What do you mean by that? That makes

me take on the victories of the past and then

celebrated and that's it now. Of course, we have also

heard many testimonies that this church has gone thrue I

think passes something that shares about it as well. But

those are good stories. But they shouldn't only define who

we are or can be. But I think we need

to start putting that perspective that every generation, our future,

the kids and all that, even ourselves. You know, we

need to be new curators of new miracles.

And how do we do that obedience, true faith?

You know, God didn't design us to merely admire the past,

our wins in the past. You know, the God in

the Book of Acts that we read, you know, uh,

is still working today and he wants he wants you

to experience him in what he's doing today as well

if you only live in the past or live with

borrowed testimony so to speak. Yeah, we won't go too far.

We talk about revivals right this year. Revivals right, don't

talk about just us mission trips that I went. You know,

I think NET used to go to missions. Uh, where

do you go on that last time that you went to?

Some of the countries in the past, Those are good

by the way. Yeah, that is like busy anyway. Yeah,

but you know, we'n talk about new missions, new miracles,

don't talk about church plants that you planted before. We

are all made to be pioneers, by the way, highess,

what a pioneersess are creating new things. We're not just

meant to copy. So although stories are important, it reminds

us that God has been faithful. There's a danger that

we can sometimes substitute all that and you know, subt

even our own faith. So we start then living on

borrowd testimonies of who we were. But let me tell you,

we need to then chart out new territories. Why because,

as I said, the God of the Book of Acts

is still the God of today, same God.

But why do we Sometimes.

The way we behave is that as though the Holy

spirit's retired early, you know, two thousand years ago and

not here today, sometimes we live like that, right, we

don't expect like how they expected it. Jesus isn't changed,

by the way, the Gospel hasn't lost his power, but

sometimes it's the perspective that's changed. So the question is

not really whether God still speaks, he does speak, are

we actually listening and more importantly, are we actually obeying?

So I have this light over here, next light, Well,

yesterday stories can inspire us. Let today's obedience be the

one that defines us. You need to start looking like

this now. One of my favorite stories in X is

you know it's not actually on Paul. You know, everybody

knows Paul. Saul became Paul, right, we know that story,

but it's more on The focus is more on Annias.

Now nobody goes, I say I want to be an

Annius one day growing up, everybody's going to become a Paul.

Why Because Paul wrote so much of the New Testament.

He planted many churches, he changed the world, so to speak. Yeah,

but if you look at X nine, let's just ten

to nineteen.

Let's just read very quickly. Annius baptized Saul. This is us.

Before Saul became Paul. Right now, There was a certain

disciple at Damascus named Ananias. And to him the Lord

said in a vision, and he said, here, I am Lord, Literally,

what do you want me do? So the Lord said

to him, arise, and here's the word again. Go talk

about going right. So it's go go to the street

called straight and inquire at the house of Judas for

one called soul of Tarsus. For behold, he is praying,

and in the vision he has seen a man named

Annaius coming in and putting his hand on him so

that he might receive his sight.

So he was blinded for a while.

But anyway before there was a Pall, right, there's this

guy called Anonaius.

And what did God say? Go right, let's read on.

Then Anaius answered, Lord, I've heard from many that about

this man. How much harm he has done to your saints.

By the way, he didn't understand that part. Right, he

was Saul was a slayer, you know, he slays a

lot of people faith in that time, and.

He is sorry.

And here he has authority from the chief priests to

buying all who call on your name.

Now what does this translate to? It's like, Lord, are

you sure?

How many of us always sometimes when say Lord, send me,

then then Lord say go You're like, oh you should

not the uncomfortable part.

Right, I've heard about this guy.

He's so famous. He's arrested Christians. Right, he's persecuting Christians

in other words, right, and then nice saying God, I

think you got the wrong persona right, Are you sure

you wan need me go there?

Are you sure? Has anyone ever felt like that before

when God cast you the goal? Right? Maybe only Mila?

Okay, yeah, but again in fifteen, the Lord says goal

or he is the chosen vessel. Let me just read

to the bottom there and read. So when he went there,

he entered the house, he laid hands on the brother,

He says, Brother, Saul, the Lord Jesus who appeared to

you on the road as I come, he has sent

me focused on sending me that you may receive your

sight and be filled by the Holy Spirit. And of

course read on is where he then received the spirit.

So I purposially put this other photograph there, right, and

I coined it one knot that changed history. Now, A

lot of the Bible heroes that we also know or

read about, even the some of the modern day heroes

of faith, a lot of their stories if you go

through their history, right, It's actually true people are analyzed.

Those that were just told to do what seemingly is

the small things of or told to go and they

just obediently did it. So he saidually right without ananias

doing what he called if he didn't obey. If he

didn't walk through that door, if he didn't lay hands

on Saul didn't knock that door, history would have been

very different. And what did he say? He called him

brother Saul. He didn't say en the Mesaul or public

enemy one. If someone would ask you to go and

talk to Kim Jong, let's not use the words like

I'm trying to say, you know, hitler or whatever you know,

will you say brother.

Or murderer?

Why did he say brother Saul even though he knows that. Yeah,

it's because God has spoken, right. Imagine if Anon I

said no, obviously theoretically speaking, yeah, we will not have

an apostle Paul, or may not have an apostle Paul. Okay,

So one man's quiet obedience really changed the history. So

never ever, church under estimate the power of faith, true obedience.

You never know.

Yesterday at the wedding, pastor met actually came up before

he did the solemnization. He said that this was Sharon's dad,

who is actually a school teacher in Cebu, and Pasta

met before he started he said something along and paraphrasing here,

and it's because of this man that I accepted faith.

I mean accepted Christ and because of that, I'm now

doing what I do. And one full circle, he's solemnizing

the wedding. It's pasta to the embas mat right, But yeah,

it's because of the faithful person in the form of

a teacher who decides to just go and decide to obey.

Did he know that he will?

You know, he'll be responsible for somebody like a like

a birth thing of past and mad spiritual son like

past the medin I think, no, he just did it,

and then nice, I'm quite sure. So he's like, I

just want to pray that I don't get killed, you know,

But he still obeyed. So yeah, some of us, you know,

may never maybe even in the position maybe to even

speak or share or lead or become like the rightha

bonki that preaches to a thousand people. You know, you

may not lead that kind of a number. But perhaps

you can pray for somebody like Benji who's a missionary

in Japan, who will or may be the one to

do that. Can we be obedient to that, Or perhaps

you can disciple somebody who can be the next person

to do what God has called them to do, or

encourage somebody who then will be effective.

In what they are.

Called to do, or even teach a child. We've got

children here, We've got teenagers. Yeah, I'm quite sure you

got something to give them, right, who may one day

lead the nation for Christ. That is the power of faith,

and it can only be done true obedience. So never

ever underestimate quiet obedience. Remember I said earlier, one not

changed history. Can you just do the simple and not.

Faith? Orst is never small in God's kingdom.

By the way, sometimes I think we overthink it, because

that's how sometimes the world tells you what we are

doing is just feel town wasting time. No, you know

our church as an X and moving along from the

book of X X. But you know X church itself.

We are where we are today. I don't think it's

because of just brilliant men strategies, okay, or amazing talent, or.

Or perfect planning.

In fact, a lot of things that we do sometimes

we still question, you know, whether we did it correctly.

But I think one thing can be said that we

have been quite obedient when God called us to do

things that are maybe less logical. You know, many years

ago when we were told to go small. Today we

have eighteen plants. Still thinking is a bit crazy, right,

This is some always like you know, like, how does

this work from a one church model to eighteen plants?

People are still transform people, lives are still changed. Right,

So yeah, thousands of ordinary acts of beading is what

it takes to get there. So let's yeah, let's when

you say yes, lot, really yes lot, all right, even

though nobody applauded, nobody noticed, It's fine. We need to

excise faith and that's how the kingdom grows.

Amen.

Yeah, so on most light, after this, it's your turn.

Really they you play a game, right now, it's your turn.

What will you do? Can you do the act of obedience?

Can you play roll the dice? Take that risk on

that somebody that God's placed in ham in your heart?

Extreme can come up pretty much done? Eddy.

By the way, this material, right that pastors candef has

given us eyes only like probably ten minutes with a material.

But you know, as as I spend some time, you know,

just just spending time with the Lord as well, you

know sometimes I download different things. Okay, but but yeah,

before we post today, right, let me ask you this

very personal question. Right, imagine if somebody were to look

into your life or observe you spend the next one

month thirty days just looking at you, scrutinizing you a

little bit. They watch how you work, they watch how

you speak. They see how you treat your family, maybe

how you handle your finances, your money, et cetera. How

you respond when somebody not so loving talks to you,

or how you served, or how perhaps you love people

that God has put under your care.

What would they see? It's the big question here.

So if someone were to watch your life for the

one month, will they see someone that has faith or

will they just say that, Okay, this is a church goer.

Where's a big cross Christian and nothing else. You know,

church attendance may also be visible. You know, we go

to homes, you got to prayer service, whatever. But you

know all those are good, but it's not when the

faith is evidence. So faith, just as church attendance is visible,

we can seek and count. Faith should also be countable

or visible. But perhaps sometimes we have not really taken

stock or even looked at whether it is.

Visible, because why how do you count faith?

Faith is when you obey and forgive check one one

one attendance in the area or faith is when you

somebody is being a bit more generous. Check another point

there evidenced. Or faith is when somebody obey I've never

done this before. We've got a team that just went

out for missions. They're coming on our way back. A

lot of them are first time missionaries. You think they've

got experience, maybe someone that have a lot, But I

think think a lot of it is just that obedience.

Yeah.

Often faith is shown when yeah, we don't quite fully understand.

Like I said, so let me just end with this.

I don't have time to go to the scripture. But

you know, John eleven talks about you know, Lazarus who died,

gives some context this Jesus and Martha. When Lazarus died,

the brother died, right, everything looks hopeless.

Martha was grieving what Jesus did.

Right, he came out and in Verses eleven, sorry Verses forty.

In chapter eleven, he says, Jesus said this, did I

not tell you that if you believe, you will see

the glory of God? Now I want us to focus

on this particular scripture because the order is important. What

he say, did I not tell you if you believe

you will see the glory of God. So what's first important?

First and foremost, you had to believe us, Yes, but

then the seeing is later. Sometimes we always say can

we see us before I start to believe?

All right? So she said, no, believe and you will see.

That's faith.

And of course, like I said earlier, there is a

sequence and end of the sequence. God speaks, faith hears,

obedient acts and evidence follow. So church, remember this, God

is still speaking. God has never kept quiet, The Holy

Spirit is still at work. He's still leading. So the

question is not really do I have faith? If God

calls you to do all those things you reco sound,

just obey, forgive, lead a small group, beat homes or

choosing integrity at work, do the right thing yeah, or

sharing Jesus somebody. Don't wait until you're sure, don't wait

until fear disappears. Don't even be anti. Everything makes sense,

just like what the prophet like you would say. Just

just do it, like her, just do it.

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